Shattered Chords (The Encore Book 3)

by N. N. Britt

  “Don’t worry!” Malik shouted, grinning at me. “I have a backup plan if he burns the meat.” The golden cross on his wet chest proudly glimmered in the afternoon light.

  “We’ll just order pizza,” Ally added, reaching for Snowflake, who was peering into the water from the edge of the pool, still deciding if he wanted to get in. She rubbed his head gently and, in turn, he licked her cheek.

  I couldn’t remember when I’d seen my daughter so unguarded...completely free of the walls she’d been putting up lately.

  She’d spent over an hour with Dante in his music room, beaming at him as he tried on her present—a custom-made guitar strap. Then they played a few songs together while I ventured into the kitchen to see if Yanneth needed help. She didn’t. Not at that moment, anyway, so I gave myself a tour of the house, or at least, the accessible parts. I didn’t go upstairs, but every space with an open door on the ground floor seemed like fair game, considering that most of the rooms were lacking furniture.

  Once Ally had had enough, she moved to the pool area, Malik joining her shortly after. His formal attire had been switched to a simple tank and baseball shorts.

  I imagined someone like Dante Martinez would throw a different kind of birthday party—with a stripper pole and a handful of Playboy models. A barbeque that included only two guests—me and Ally—seemed so at odds with his rock star status.

  “There she is!” He waved at me from behind the grill, then swept his hand—the one holding the metal tongs used to flip the meat—through the air to include everyone present in his next statement. “I hope you’re hungry.”

  “We are,” I called, my voice becoming thin in the warm wind.

  That made him happy. “Good.” Though I couldn’t see his eyes, I could see that his smile grew wider.

  Snowflake changed his trajectory and waddled over to me to inspect my ankles. I’d left my sandals in the pool house along with my dress and was barefoot now, the stone platform pleasantly cool against my feet, which, for some reason, intrigued the puppy. He was a curious creature, who licked the most unexpected things, barked whenever he pleased, and demanded to be cuddled.

  The sun was slowly sliding down across the sky, still bright and cruel, but there was a huge umbrella set up in the yard, adjustable reclining chaises hiding beneath its massive shade.

  I picked up Snowflake and made my way toward the shallow end of the pool to wet my feet, my gaze avoiding Dante at all costs as he continued to follow Yanneth’s instructions. A couple of minutes later, she retreated into the house.

  “She shouldn’t have left him alone with the grill,” Malik joked lightheartedly. “We’ve had enough wildfires this season.”

  Snowflake fussed in my arms and I had to step out of the water to let him back down. As soon as his tiny paws hit the ground, he took off in the direction of the grill. The thick, savory smell of spices and premium beef hung in the air, reminding me once again that I’d forfeited my meal earlier in favor of picking the right dress.

  Funny that I wasn’t even wearing it anymore.

  “So is this how a semi-retired rockstar usually spends his days? Cooking?” I asked Dante as I slowly approached him, knowing all too well that dodging the man who’d gone above and beyond to make me and my daughter feel comfortable here was only a short-term solution to what was starting to look like long-term.

  The unspoken something between us.

  The unspoken something that dangled in the hot air, invisible yet solid.

  Snowflake was biting the bottom of Dante’s jeans with palpable ferocity. I blamed it on the rich smell of food. Poor puppy didn’t have much patience.

  “When you have nothing else to do pretty much every day of the week.” He nodded, smiling softly.

  Behind me, the sounds of splashing water turned into laughter. Ally and Malik were getting along surprisingly well. She’d quickly explained to me who he was when we were putting on our swimsuits, and I realized I’d seen billboards with the name of his gym before.

  Malik Dixon was a very famous football player from Jamaica.

  Currently, a successful fitness entrepreneur.

  Dante kept interesting company, I thought to myself as I glanced back at my daughter owning the airfield-sized pool. It occurred to me how easily she made friends with people way out of her league and her age bracket. Yet she and I were hardly on speaking terms these days.

  “Ally said the band has another show booked for November,” Dante drawled, poking the piece of meat closest to the edge of the grill.

  I turned my head to look at him. “Yes. Jesse Catchum made the arrangements.”

  “That’s great. The more live shows she plays, the more confident she’ll be in front of a larger crowd when the time comes.”

  “Did she tell you Jesse finally sent the guys the mastered version of the song they recorded while they were in his studio?”

  “Yes, she mentioned it. Did you listen to it?”

  “I did.” A memory pulled at the edge of my mind. “I still can’t wrap my head around it. They all sound so different.”

  “She’s lucky to have you.” Dark undertones filled Dante’s voice.

  He dropped his gaze to the sizzling beef, giving me a chance to openly study him. He’d taken off his top, his ink now on full display, and I was acutely aware of his body, its closeness and its dark allure. Although not as big and muscular as Malik, he cut a very nice figure. His frame was elegantly lean, and taut muscles ran the length of his stomach, chest, and arms, rolling and tightening beneath his olive skin every time he moved.

  “Thank you,” I murmured. “For what you’re doing.”

  Dante looked up at me, the reflection of the sun sliding across the surface of his sunglasses. I couldn’t see his eyes, but I felt them on me, nonetheless. His hidden stare set something off in my core. Heat blasted through me, wrapping around me from the inside out like a thin coat of film.

  It was almost as if we were attuned to each other on some subconscious level.

  Dante cleared his throat. “I’m happy to continue working with Ally. That was our agreement, wasn’t it?” A smirk tipped the side of his mouth.

  “I suppose you could say that.”

  He returned his attention to the meat to check it, then declared, “Looks like dinner is ready.”

  The four of us ate beneath the umbrella, surrounded by the scent of seasoning and freshly cooked meat. Dante tried to rope Yanneth into joining us as well, but she wouldn’t budge. The two had a relaxed relationship. He hardly treated her as a regular housekeeper and that warmed my heart, because it made him even more attractive.

  His humility and his humble ways.

  And then I remembered that, despite all this glitz and glamour he lived bathed in now, he’d come from a very poor neighborhood. And suddenly, I wanted to know more about his childhood and his teen years. I wanted to know what exactly had pushed him into such a reckless lifestyle. How a person with nothing had become a person who’s seen and done everything.

  This need only strengthened as minutes by the pool ticked by. There was music pouring from the large speaker with blinking LED lights that Malik had hauled outside. We played several rounds of Fact or Fiction. No flashcards. First one to raise a hand had priority of giving their answer before everyone else.

  Malik was keeping score on a piece of napkin.

  Eventually, Dante folded the umbrella and ditched his sunglasses and I allowed myself to steal a glance.

  “Eating bananas attracts mosquitoes,” my daughter said from her chaise lounge. Hands flew up.

  “Camille,” she gestured at me, refusing to call me Mom.

  “Fiction,” I sputtered.

  “Correct,” she rolled the Rs. “Your turn, Dante.”

  He lifted his face to the darkening sky, a deep frown settling between his brows. “Hmmm.” There was a moment of silence, and everything but the buzz of the crickets faded away. “This is the best birthday I’ve ever had,” Dante finally said, his
eyes returning to me, searing.

  Ally and Malik raised their hands simultaneously and I realized that I was the only one who didn’t react to his statement.

  “I was first,” my daughter insisted.

  “I don’t think so, kid,” Malik protested.

  They both turned to Dante and stared, expecting him to choose. Finally, he blinked back his confusion and shook his head once. “Why don’t we go again?”

  “You have to ask a different question.” Ally groaned, seemingly upset.

  “All right, I’ll think of something else.” Dante grinned, and I wondered if he didn’t want us to know the answer.

  We continued with the game for a little longer, until the sun had finally hidden behind the horizon, giving way to pleasantly cool twilight. The air was nice. The wind, however, was still at large, blowing at the spirals of smoke coming from the grill and smattering it across the yard. Even my hair smelled like smoke. Granted, it was a nice, juicy, peppered scent, but that could explain why Snowflake was enjoying my company so much. After devouring three chunks of cooked meat, he nestled in my lap and refused to leave.

  “You’re spoiling him,” I pointed out, looking at Dante. “You’re supposed to feed him proper puppy food.”

  To that, Snowflake yawned and flopped his head on my thigh.

  “I am,” Dante countered. “We had it for breakfast, but he’s not going to want it while we’re eating prime meat.”

  “He’s choosing not to discipline this dog at all,” Malik said from across the table. “If he had children, they’d be running wild and take advantage of his lack of any sort of authority.”

  “He doesn’t need to be disciplined.” Dante shook his head defiantly, tossing a slice of cucumber around his plate with his fork. “He’s rich. He can do whatever he wants.”

  Ally was grinning. There was a smudge of barbecue sauce on her chin and she was oblivious to the fact.

  “He’s a sweet little boy.” I brushed my palm over the puppy’s body, absorbing his small breaths. He was warm and alive and absolutely adorable.

  After finishing up my food and handing a napping Snowflake over to my daughter, I retreated to the pool house to check on my phone that had been sitting next to my dress all this time. It was a relief not to worry about anything, at least for the duration of one afternoon, especially with Harper in charge of all things Dream Bride. Naturally, I didn’t expect any emergencies, but there was a preview of a text from him on my screen anyway, so I read it.

  Harper: How’s the BBQ with the hottie? Is he walking around shirtless?

  Laughter bubbled up my throat. Leave it to my best friend to turn every innocent situation that included a man into an impossible innuendo.

  As a matter of fact, yes. I typed in response.

  Harper: Pics?

  You’re horrible.

  My phone rang, and I answered with, “What you’re asking me is sort of immoral.”

  “Oh, please. That man has done so many immoral things, he won’t care if you sneak a photo or two of his naked self,” Harper joked.

  Familiar voices and soothing music mingled in the background. He was still at the boutique.

  I lowered my voice and shut the door. “He’s a decent cook. He had a little help, but the food is great.”

  “How big is the pool?”

  “Huge. It can probably fit several dozen people.”

  “Is Ally having a good time?”

  “She is. There’s a music room here.” I dove into a quick recap of all the guitars I’d seen earlier, then asked, “Do you know who Malik Dixon is?”

  “The dude who owns those gyms all over L.A.,” Harper drawled as if trying to remember more. “Yeah. What about him? Is he there?”

  “He’s staying here. Dante met him in rehab.”

  “Hmmm...really? Interesting.” The background noises disappeared, then I heard some clicking. A computer keyboard. “Looks like he and his wife are in the process of getting a divorce.”

  “Okay, well, it doesn’t matter.” I felt like I was prying into someone else’s life now and it made me uncomfortable. We all had secrets and baggage. “He and Ally hit it off.”

  “Bug’s moving up in the world, huh?” Harper noted.

  “Yep... Anyway, I just wanted to make sure everything went well today.”

  “It usually does every Sunday when I’m the boss. Why wouldn’t it now all of a sudden?”

  He had a point.

  “I’ll let you go and finish up then.”

  “I got your back, sweets.” Harper’s voice wobbled a little and I realized that he was still immensely upset over his loss of Tallulah. Earlier this week, he’d driven to Chatsworth and spent several hours in front of Lucas’s place, watching. He’d called it a stakeout. I’d called it stalking and asked him not to go there anymore. He’d agreed, but I wasn’t so sure he’d truly listened to me. For all I knew, he was doing his investigation behind my back.

  “Thanks, Harper.”

  “Have fun and don’t overthink it.”

  The moment the call ended, I heard a knock.

  “All good, I’m decent,” I shouted and tossed the phone into my beach bag, expecting to see Ally.

  The door creaked open and Dante’s form stood on the threshold. A white lollipop stick peeked out from the corner of his mouth. “There’s dessert if you want,” he said simply, but his eyes, dark and riotous, communicated something else, something unstable and erratic.

  “Oh.” I shuffled my bare feet against the tiled floor. “I guess I should try some.”

  Gosh, this was coming out all wrong. Immature and stilted.

  “I didn’t make it, just so you know,” Dante confessed, his gaze dipping to my chest. “I’m not there yet.”

  “One step at a time, I suppose.”

  “Hah, that’s what my therapist says.” He plucked the candy out. It was bright pink and smelled like cherry.

  Tense silence fell, and for the first time since I’d taken off my dress, he let himself look at my body. Really look. With hunger and need that was so strong, goosebumps broke out on my arms and back.

  “You’re beautiful,” Dante whispered softly, his words a sensual rasp.

  There was a good distance between us, empty space that suddenly seemed like miles and miles of hard stone.

  I swallowed.

  “It’s a compliment, Camille.” He stepped inside and slowly shut the door behind him, then stuck the candy back in his mouth.

  “I’m still not sure how to accept them.” I smiled ruefully, my pulse spiking.

  “I hope you enjoyed yourself.” He moved toward me with small, slow strides.

  “I did. I still am.”

  “Good.”

  The air inside the pool house vibrated.

  “How does it feel to be a year older?” I asked the first question that popped into my head.

  Dante shrugged, the candy rattling gently against his teeth. “I can’t really tell. I haven’t been thirty-nine long enough to determine whether I like it or not.”

  “Would you turn back time if you could?”

  He was quiet for a long moment, his eyes fixed on my face, determined. Then he said, “No. You weren’t there.”

  Restlessness cinched through me, my blood heating up, my legs shaking. I thought back to my last relationship that was so long ago, and I couldn’t even remember how it felt to be around a man who wanted me. It took me a good minute to fish out the name of that man too.

  Steven. A banker who drove a silver convertible and wore suits. Just the way my mother liked them. Clean. Neat. With no baggage and a sizable wallet.

  “What is this, Dante?” I asked.

  He stepped closer, so close, our breaths met and mingled. “It’s clearly the beginning of something very indecent, Camille.”

  “Not today.” The conviction in my voice was absent.

  “No, definitely not today.” He drew his lollipop from between his lips, this time slower than necessary, his pink-
hued tongue swirling around the leftovers of the candy in a way that had me thinking of other things. X-rated things.

  My center ached with desire, and in this moment, I was a bad mother, because I realized that I wanted him too.

  Bottom line—it was stupid to continue to deny the fact that we were attracted to each other.

  “There’s an event at my friend’s house in a few weeks,” Dante said, holding my gaze. “I’d love for you to go with me. Ally should come too.”

  “What kind of event?” I tried to ignore the heat radiating off him to no avail.

  “Engagement party.”

  “Do I know this friend of yours?”

  “You probably do.” He nodded. A flicker of pain flashed in his eyes, but it was gone just as fast as it appeared. The only reason I noticed it was because he was right in front of me, unabashedly so. His cherry-flavored breath fanned against my cheeks and tickled my nostrils.

  “What’s your friend’s name?”

  “Frank.”

  Understanding surged through me. I’d kept putting off the inevitable, but I’d watched the infamous meltdown video last week before I decided to accept his invitation to this party. It’d left me bereft. The whole thing was just embarrassing, but what made it worse was the fact millions of people found it entertaining. Yes, deep down, I felt sorry for Dante Martinez and I hated myself for it because I’d also—at least once in my life—wanted to give in and try the forbidden.

  Try him.

  “Are you sure you want me to go with you?” I asked, still slightly unsettled by the invitation.

  “Yes, as my date preferably, but you can go as my friend or my plus-one. Whichever option you’re comfortable with.”

  I inhaled deeply, my mind racing.

  “Before you say no,” Dante whispered, “Ally will have a chance to meet some very interesting and influential people. Isabella Solana will be there. She’s a good connection to have. Frank and Cassy too.”